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Slovakia threatens to cut benefits for Ukrainians

Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico has threatened to cut financial support for more than 130,000 Ukrainian refugees as the dispute with Ukraine escalates over Russian gas.

On January 1, Kyiv shut down a pipeline that had been used for decades to supply Central Europe with Russian natural gas.

Slovakia was the main port of entry and the country will now lose millions of euros in travel fees.

The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) estimated last month that there were 130,530 Ukrainian refugees in Slovakia out of 6,813,900 worldwide.

Fico – who made a surprise visit to Moscow in December for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin – described Kyiv’s actions as “destructive”.

An EU country’s prime minister has said he will propose freezing electricity exports to Ukraine and “significantly reduce” financial support for Ukrainians who have taken refuge in Slovakia.

He said there is no risk that Slovakia itself will suffer from a gas shortage, as it has already made other plans.

But Fico added that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s decision to turn off the taps would deprive Slovakia of 500 million euros (£415m; $518m) in import costs.

He said his party is ready to discuss the debates on “suspension of electricity supply” and “dramatic reduction of support for Ukrainian citizens in Slovakia”.

“The only way Slovakia can do is to restore the roads or seek compensation to replace the loss of public funds,” he added.

Last month Zelensky accused Fico of helping Putin “fund the war and weaken Ukraine”.

“Fico is dragging Slovakia into Russia’s efforts to cause the suffering of the Ukrainian people,” the Ukrainian president said.

Poland has promised to support Kyiv if Slovakia cuts off its electricity exports – vital to Ukraine, whose power plants are regularly attacked by Russia.

The Polish government called the cut “another victory” against Moscow, while the European Commission said the EU was ready for the change and many countries could face it.

Moldova, which is not in the EU, already has a deficit problem.

Russia can still send gas to Hungary, Turkey and Serbia through the TurkStream pipeline across the Black Sea.

[BBC]

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